A primary concern of any hospital, including Memorial Hospital of South Bend, is the comfort of the patients-keeping them warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Mike Rogers, an A-Mechanic for Memorial Hospital, is one of a team of personnel responsible for keeping the patients comfortable all year long. One of his primary duties is overseeing key critical hospital systems, including the chilled water systems. A licensed HVAC contractor, Rogers has been with the hospital for fifteen years.
Recently, Rogers found himself tackling a major dirt problem that was destroying the flow sensors in the campus' secondary chilled water loops. "As a result of dirt in the system, our chilled water loop was performing poorly," Rogers stated. The impellers on the vane-type flow sensors were disintegrating from the combination of the high gpm and grit-type dirt and rust that was passing through the sensors. He decided to seek the assistance of BSA LifeStructures Engineers (Indianapolis, IN) to solve his ongoing dirt problem. Once BSA confirmed the cause to be a dirt problem, they recommended a pair of Spirotrap® dirt separators with optional sediment collection tanks to clean up the system.
How the Dirt Separators Work
The Spirotrap Dirt Separators manufactured by Spirotherm, Inc. (Glendale Heights, IL) employ the patented Spirotube® barrier medium to scrub dirt from hot, chilled and condenser water systems with a high level of efficiency. The dirt collides with the medium and falls out of the flow path to the dirt collection chamber at the bottom of the unit, where it can be blown down through a manual or automatic blow down valve. The Spirotrap is available with an optional removable lower head to facilitate removal of the bundle for inspection or cleaning, should it be required. The optional sediment collection tank negates the need for blowing down to a drain and allows the dirt to be removed and disposed of.
Positive Results
Two Spirotrap ASME dirt separators, a TDT600FL and a TDT1000FL, were purchased through Hoffman Sales & Specialty Co., Inc. (Carmel, IN) Spirotherm's sales office in Indiana. H & G Services (South Bend, IN) retrofitted the units into the hospital's system without complications. "[The] installation went smoothly with very good results," Rogers reports.Rogers couldn't be happier with the units. The system is seeing improved flow and more accurate distribution of the chilled water through the secondary loop. "The units are performing very well and actually exceeding our expectation as to how much material is being removed," Rogers observed. "System operation continues to improve, and we are now seeing the added benefit of better heat transfer on the cooling coils."
For more information on the Spirotrap, contact Spirotherm, Inc. at (630) 307-2662, or visit them on the web at www.spirotherm.com.
